Israel carries out first ground operation of Gaza crisis

Israeli soldiers from the Nahal Infantry Brigade walk across a field near central Gaza StripPhoto: REUTERS/Finbarr O'Reilly

By David Blair

12:04PM BST 13 Jul 2014

Israel carried out the first ground operation of the Gaza conflict on Sunday when commandos attacked a site used for launching rockets.

Leaflets were dropped warning thousands of people to leave their homes in a northern area of the Palestinian territory before the raid took place.

The first deployment of Israeli troops coincided with a further escalation of the air campaign. On day six of Operation Protective Edge, the Israeli air force destroyed police stations and the Hamas security headquarters, severely damaging the homes of civilians nearby.

A Palestinian firefighter trys to extinguish a fire at a UN storehouse in an area west of Gaza City (AFP/Getty Images)

At least 165 Palestinians have been killed since the onset of the offensive last Tuesday. Hamas, meanwhile, has fired about 630 rockets at Israeli cities, injuring 10 people.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, gave no hint of an end to the operation. “We are hitting Hamas with growing force,” he told the cabinet during its weekly meeting. “We do not know when this operation will end.”

The commando raid was carried out by naval special forces with the aim of destroying launch sites for the long-range rockets that have struck targets as far away as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

Israeli soldiers from the Nahal Infantry Brigade rest in the shade of trees near central Gaza Strip (Reuters)

The commandos fought Hamas gunmen in Sudaniya district. Afterwards, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said the operation had achieved its goal. “The mission was accomplished,” said an IDF statement, adding: “During the mission, there was an exchange of fire. Four soldiers were lightly injured and all returned home safely.”

Thousands of Palestinians have sought refuge at schools run the by the United Nations. Robert Turner, the UN head of operations, said that about 4,000 people were sheltering at eight schools. "More are arriving by the minute. They are mostly fleeing areas in the north," he told the Agence France Press news agency.

Palestinian families travel to a UN school in Gaza City to seek shelter after evacuating their homes (AFP/Getty Images)

International pressure for a ceasefire is starting to build. Jean-Yves Le Drian, the French defence minister, urged an “immediate ceasefire” on Sunday with the aim of restarting peace talks and avoiding an “escalation that would be tragic for this part of the world”.

William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, will discuss the Gaza crisis with John Kerry, the US secretary of state, when they meet in Vienna on Sunday. Meanwhile, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the German foreign minister, is expected to visit the Middle East on Monday.

But Mr Netanyahu has already said that "no international pressure" will halt a campaign that he says is vital to the defence of Israel.